How North American Indigenous Peoples made Maple Sugar | BUSHCRAFT | CANADIAN | SELF SUFFICIENT 

Caleb thank you for keeping the old ways alive and relevant.

Best thing I have watched in quiet a while .

I recovered 25 gallons of maple water back about 3 yrs. ago. I could not get it to the proper temp. to boil down. So, the family and I drank maple water, and it was very good the way it was. I enjoyed you and your buddy in the last part of the video. I bet that maple dough was excellant. !

Absolutely the best videos of this type on RU-vid.

Thia was literally a treat to watch. We all need to learn how to live off of the land as we never know when we may hay to.

Very interesting and educational

Good morning Peter. Back to fall like weather here. Spring storms yesterday and possible snow this Saturday. Have a great day friend and thanks for sharing.

WOW....your stuff just keeps getting better Mr. Pete!!! Isn't it just amazing how people came up with how to do things. Patience is surely the number one tool to have. Thank you for showing us the ways of the Native Peoples. And as always, be well! Robin

Making a small batch of syrup from my walnut tree is on my after retirement bucket list. Caleb has a very engaging and informative presence that complements yours very well. Future collaborations would be well received. This was a very enjoyable visit with both of you. Well done!

Absolutely fascinating. I have long wondered how the natives did all of this and this was a great explainer. Thank you for bringing this to us all, and a massive thank you to Caleb to for keeping the ways of his people alive today.

This is one my favorite channels. I'm in New Orleans, and sadly much of this local tribal knowledge is lost.

Thank you Peter and Caleb, for a fascinating tutorial on maple sugar making. It’s a treat to watch and learn this amazing history.

It's an expensive thing to invite you along for Maple Sugaring. I appreciated all the ethnography that Caleb Musgrave brings to the table.

love the vid... would like to see more of this type of this content.. thanks so much.

Just fantastic! Thanks to the kind gentleman who demonstrated the native way to collect and process the maple sugar.

Fascinating. That man (Caleb) is full of the knowledge of traditional indigenous ways of life. Thanks for sharing.

Love it, I could watch this all day long.

So very interesting, the things we take for granted. Thanks for sharing this process with us.

Excellent video Peter.. I'm too far south for sugar maple but I have heard of people tapping pecan, black walnut, hickory and what we call "sweetgum" all of which we have in abundance. You and your guest have inspired me to tap some of our trees and try to make syrup and sugar next season. Keep up the good work..!

Absolutely wonderful. Thank you for this.🌲🪵🪶

Hey Peter! If I live to be a hundred, I'll never forget watching the sap being boiled down to syrup in the large copper vats on the ol' family farmstead.! It ALWAYS made the pancakes and waffles taste better... and the home made butter wasn't bad either! Good times and great memories!

Interesting history lesson 🙂👍

There is a Rice Lake, Wisconsin... Hiawatha park etc... as well. very cool.

Peter, clearly one of you best videos yet. I support Caleb's view on the "pre-contact" use of clay pots rather than heated stones for evaporation, but I also know that further north, sap was sometimes stored and later boiled over fires in moose hides! To us, hemlock (kaw gaw gee minj) translates as "raven" tree. In the southern portion of the raven's range in Ontario and Quebec, where protective cliff faces are not available, ravens much prefer to roost and nest in hemlocks. My family has been making sugar in sap kettles since the 1700's and those offspring who have not switched to evaporators for commercial production, continue with kettle boiling for personal use. For the past 45 years, I have used four 15 gallon sap kettles closely spaced in a line for syrup production and a fifth 10 gallon kettle to advance a portion of the run to sugar after the syrup is first filtered. Sugar making is always a two step process with a pause for filtering unless you want to become constipated by all the carbon that gets into the syrup in kettles! Although I have not done so myself, I have seen the use of the granulating (sugar) trough (nasay-yaw wangwawn) but with tools taking the shape of an extra wide paint brush rather than the paddle shape illustrated in the video. To make good nasay igun (granulated sugar) you should have allowed the temperature to go a bit higher so that it goes almost as fine as powder. With the lower temperature you made naw min aws. Paddle shaped tools are for granulating sugar in iron kettles. The sugar paddle that I use is much larger, as I prefer to work the sugar from a standing position rather than paddling on my knees. As Caleb said, the sugar must be brought to high heat over a very low fire or it will boil over. Once the syrup reaches the proper temperature, you let it cool somewhat without fire, then tip the kettle up on a 45 degree angle and begin working it with the paddle. The bottom tip of the paddle is usually shaped to fit the chine in the kettle used.

This video was most fascinating, absolutely love the old ways. Thank you!

Wow. Please give us more long videos like this of handcrafts and productions or builds from start to finish!

What a fascinating video. The amount of work went into every task from tools to the sugar. Thanks for sharing.

An incredible gifted speaker and teacher, learning about the Hiawatha First Nation People's beautiful stories, authentic crafts, foraging and cooking traditions. My elderly parents, my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this documentary, my father once carved my mother weaved and I am still learning, thank you for sharing, beautiful. My husband, children and I lived in Victoria BC Vancouver Island during Covid-19 Jun 2020- Feb 2022 unfortunately did not get the opportunity to experience your beautiful culture due to Covid-19. We hope to return one day 🙏

Thank you for this fabulous insight into the maple sugaring process . I'm in the middle of doing this myself, but took a break from watching the fire to view this video . Another winner, Peter :- ]

The more I learn the more I know I don't know. I'll tell you, this again reaffirms how much can be lost without out the work you guys do. Simple tools make so many other useful things. Amazing video again.

What an interesting and amazing process. Great video. Thanks for sharing this with us.

Absolutely a great video!! Lots of content and knowledge in that time frame. Love what ur doing

Sixty years ago my grandfather showed me how to make maple syrup and maple candy. The hint of smokey flavor from boiling the sap down over an elm wood fire is still in my mind. My grandmother made maple candy with the last quart of syrup. God bless their souls.

My grandfather on his property had a sugar shack and made maple syrup and the house I live at now, back in the 1940's and up until the 1970's the original owner used to make sugar candy and sell it. It was something once so common and now we don't see as many people getting involved in the traditional harvesting of maple syrup and I can only think of one or two I've heard of that are Native American where I am that collect sap and process it in their traditional ways. It's good to see someone making it the way it was originally done in this country once.

I visited a maple syrup tour, they never explained this or maple sugar...or perhaps I don't remember. This was one of the best vids I have seen on the history and explanation of maple syrup, maple butter and maple sugar, truly amazing!

This always fascinated me, how the process works to acquire the syrup. I appreciate the way you bring awareness to the way it was and the people who came before , thank you

I have never seen how this was done, by far one of your best videos. Other than your videos on making your home, as well as all your other projects. Very well done. Thank-you

This has to be one of your best videos ever! It's just packed full of information. I've been aware of some of these methods but seeing them in actually use is way better than reading about it. I particularly liked his observations about what was left behind in the old trees. I have some maple sugar but have been using it sparingly. My thoughts about that have certainly changed. Thanks for a very enlightening video.

Peter, A family friend we visited regularly in Parry Sound made maple syrup. That was another highlight of spending time at the cabin.. His description of the process always fascinated me. I don't know why, but his syrup always tasted better than anything else I tried.. We were never there early enough to witness the work. Since then, I've been able to observe locals making it. It sure takes a lot of effort and patience to produce that liquid gold! Him making that fan was simply amazing. His point about "hot rock boiling" makes sense. I've said watching some of these "survivalist shows" using multiple rocks to boil water "for safety" could backfire. Of course, just bringing water to a boil is a far cry from rendering something down.

I enjoyed this video so much and I was impressed by the fact that the old way of tapping did not need to damage the tree it was more respectful of the life that is giving life and you could visit that same tree many years and not be killing it or the other things that live in the tree all year long I look forward to seeing more videos thank you

Wonderful. Will never look at sugar the same again. Imagine all the effort to get something sweet like that, it would have been a very nice gift if someone gave you on of those cones back in the day.

What a humble man, incredible video loaded with tons of information! I can taste the sugar and smell it boiling.

Awesome! I love your videos and history lessons!

An absolutely fantastic video, and amazing knowledge transfer! I love learning the way our ancestors did things, humanities I mean, from carpentry to travel, to staying warm, to communicating with people you don't know the language of

Watch listen and learn what a gift with two wise man all we need is one more always Freddie 👍

I understand a little better what you mean't when you said that we have lost so much over the centuries by not having written records when indigenous cultures were taken over by ' progressive' empire builders. Well done & thanks for the lesson. I hadn't even heard of maple syrup 20 years ago!!

Your channel popped up tonight and I watched this one with Caleb, and two with you making a hatchet and a Trivet at the blacksmith shop. I found all 3 so enjoyable that I subscribed to your channel. I do not normally subscribe to things but you drew me in. Thank you for a wonderful evening of enjoyment.

I am working in a 23 000 tap sugar bush near Algonquin park. We make a lot of maple syrup, sugar, candy, butter and more but it is still very good to see how things used to be done. I never heard about the birch bark cones. That is really interesting. I like the talk of cooking a porcupine in the sap too, no shortage of porcupines out here. We also have a resident moose in one place we tap too. It is nice to see syrup being made with simple tools and a bush with no tubing too.

Wow. Survival and celebrations to preserve life and community.

Very educational remember this from grade school but never this much detail mostly just how to get sap from the tree. Same method to get latex from rubber trees.

That was awesome! It is so fascinating on how things were done! Also how useful and practical life was! Labour intensive but efficient! I liked you comment about patients being the most important tool.

Those people really had to work hard for everything in life! How amazing that it is still being carried on today! Very informative and interesting. Thank you, Peter!

Appreciate your efforts and dedication! Thank you for covering this topic. In this one episode you covered several things that have been for too long a dying way of life. The indigenous lifeway's are a rich and precious part of my life. Thank you for sharing this with your viewers. Thanks again and keep your powder dry.

One of those historic mysteries. Who first tasted maple sap, sugar cane, beat juice, et al, and thought gee I out to boil this till thick… or even to sugar.

I’m a bison rancher in Manitoba. I wish I had time to tap all the Mb Maple I have. My grandmother used to do it back in the day of big families and homesteading in the wilderness.

I really enjoyed this episode. Answered a lot of questions I had about how maple sap was processed originally by indigenous people. Thank you!

This video is very informative and joy to watch.

As I have come to expect from your videos, very entertaining and a great history lesson.

Hi Peter. Fabulous! Mind you, I would have been use sending you two out to make Maple Sugar back in the 18th Century because there would have been none left and the pair of you staggering back to the village like barrels! 😂 Best wishes, Mark

Another great video, Peter. That fan, "nice fireside project" is outstanding. Excellent idea, precisely exicuted. Wow!

Fascinating! Thanks so much love the video. Hoping by next year to buy acreage in New Hampshire with maple trees🍁

Thank you for making this!! I saw some friends on the Red Lake Reservation made some Maple syrup 30 years ago! They didn't make sugar out of It though! This was awesome!

Love these videos so much! There is a lot to learn. Tank you to share your knowledge

Thank the nature and the tree 🌳 for life sugar 🍀🍀🍀🌎🍀🍀🍀

Very fascinating and informative thank you Peter and Caleb.

Thanks again for a great lesson on history.

Awesome video lotsa love from, Indiana,

These types of life skills that you show us should never be forgotten. I'm now living off the land as much as possible on my farm. Everything you do fascinates me. Thank you for sharing.

Just fascinating

Amazing.

very good demo,thank you

Very interesting video thank you Peter.

Very interesting and informative video. Thanks for sharing both your and Caleb's knowledge.

Very cool to watch and learn!!

Most excellent, I never have seen that done. Thank you very much!

I can remember being a kid in the boy scouts on a campaign trip to Maine and I spent all my money on gifts to take back to my family it was pure maple sugar ( candy ) I had a lot of it , but by the time I got home to Pennsylvania , I only had enough left to give each person on my gift list two pieces each . I will never forget that . It was so delicious .and I felt so guilty because I spent a lot of money and really wanted to give them something nice from Maine , they all loved it ( thier two pieces ) but I still feel guilty to this day , I must have at a couple pounds of it

Loved this!

Fascinating

Excellent video! Thank you both for the lesson!

I am continuously amazed by how the human family survived and thrived in the face of the various challenges of nature. We are all one big human family, but the various smaller families learned to thrive by patience. A valuable lesson in modern as well as past times. Thanks so much for the sharing of your knowledge and the beautiful crafting of this great talent. I enjoyed this greatly. Again, thanks.

Very fascinating

That's so cool

Thank you and your buddy

That was fantastic!!

amazing camera work as always I love it

What a great video. And cool experience.

This is fascinating. THANK YOU for bringing us along. I want to live in the woods...sometimes

good job guys

Great episode, always love your videos. You talked about Caleb’s podcast. Can I get the info on that?

Good evening. I have noticed that our ancestors didnt waste or throughout items. Now that you showed the clay pot broken; is there a way to fix it possibly drilling holes in it and adfing nore clay? Dont really know if it would work or if they would have done it.

Most impressive! Is there a place or site that these "fans" can be purchased?

Did you pour water in there at the end and make tea? MMMMMmmm bet that was good.

Always the biggest obstacle to creating a wonderful product is,.. "We would have had more maple syrup and sugar, if we hadn't been eating so much of the sweet Ambrosia". hahahaha

Has someone who's trying to turn back in time to get back many lost freedom, your channel is a treasure trove. Thank you so much for all this work. Also : ru-vid.com?app=desktop

Glade I'm not a sugar lover! Even though I enjoyed this video!

Maybe I missed it in the video, but do you ever reheat the sugar with water to make reconstituted maple syrup?

Deer poops in sap bucket, deer becomes entree.

How many gallons of sap did you boil down to get this?

I imagine 1000's year of doing it.

What song is this?